猿 — “Monkey” in Japanese

Master (高手)えん, さる

Radical ⽝ · radical 94 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Monkey” in Japanese is 猿, read en, saru (えん, さる). It is a Jōyō kanji taught in Japanese secondary school (junior & senior high) — the 高手 · Master tier beyond the grade 1–6 Kyōiku set, and appears in words such as 猿 (monkey).

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What does 猿 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	猿
Meaning	Monkey
Readings	えん, さる
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	猿 (monkey)

How to read 猿

猿 is read en (えん) or saru (さる) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 猿

Same sound, different character — the classic trap. Compare them side by side:

Updated: 2026-08-28